On Wednesday 11th October I met Ali Sparkes at the launch of the Berkshire Book Award.
In my previous existence I was a school librarian (cruelly made redundant from my last post!) and have in fact worked for over 20 years in the profession in school, college and public libraries. I am still a great advocate of children’s books and the value of libraries, so shall occasionally be writing related blog pieces and promoting authors.
I have heard many authors talk to pupils and adults over my many years of working as a professional librarian, but I have to say that this had to be the most enjoyable and inspirational to date. Ali engaged the pupils from the start by warming them up with some typical audience participation preparation. This was in the style of a radio show or a family pantomime. She had cards with appropriate words on to hold up, such as ‘Groan’ (for cheesy jokes), ‘Gasp’ and ‘Clap Loudly.’
She then started her presentation by taking us back to the 1970s with a magical whirly, whirly gadget! This beginning really engaged me, as I too was a child of the 1970s, so had to laugh at Ali’s tales of how life was then, with no mobile phones, television just suddenly stopping when there was nothing else to broadcast (I remember the Test Card fondly!) and the knowledge that if you went out with your friends, in all likelihood your parents would have no idea where you were or what time you might be home! Her description of her school days was honest and heart-rending. Owing to some ‘modern thinking’ she failed to learn the alphabet properly and as a result was at one time the worst reader and writer in her school. She then discovered the library and had an inspirational art teacher who inspired and encouraged her. She discovered literature and the magic of stories through Enid Blyton and in particular, ‘Five go to Smuggler’s Top.’ Many of the pupils and staff listening were also great Enid Blyton fans.
Ali wrote her first series of books (inspired by Enid Blyton!) at about the age of 15. She showed us her illustrations for the book on the big screen. The plot revolved around Ali and her friends staying in a tent and having a lot of improbable adventures, with plenty of time for tea breaks. Cue for cheesy joke here and the use of the ‘Groan’ card – it was a very ‘intense’ story!
Ali also read other authors avidly, including Roald Dahl, Joan Aiken and L.M. Montgomery. She did send her cheesy tent story to a publisher but it was rejected. In fact, she had many rejection letters over the years – always remembering that J.K. Rowling was rejected by 12 publishers before finally being accepted – and this brutal honesty was both amusing and sad. You could see that the pupils really identified with her.
Over the years she worked for a local newspaper and the BBC, and finally had her first book published in 2006, with the help of an agent. This book was The Shapeshifters: Finding the Fox. One idea for a book which she has still not had published I thought was inspired – a noisy book called The Boy who said Plop with the added novelty of the reader being able to record their own ‘plop’ sound to use. Unfortunately this proved too expensive to be viable! She did have a mock-up of this book, and volunteer pupils from the schools were given the chance to try out the recording of the ‘plop’ sound.
In both the morning and afternoon sessions, pupils were keen to ask Ali questions. These included: ‘How much money do you earn from writing a book? (about 50p from a book costing £6.99 is the truth!), ‘Where do you get your inspiration from?’ and ‘How long does it take to write a book?’ (about 6 months on average).
I have to hold my hands up here and admit that, despite reading many books for teenagers and children, I had not managed to read a book by Ali Sparkes before now. I have immediately rectified the situation by buying a copy of Car-Jacked and had it signed. I am looking forward to reading this, and next on my list is Frozen in Time. This has a theme of going back to the 1950s with echoes of The Famous Five, so I just cannot wait to get started on it!
Of course at the end of the session, the Whirly Whirly gadget had to do its magic and bring us back to the 21st Century!